Homeschool lawsCalifornia

🇺🇸 Homeschool law

California homeschool: affidavit, attendance

Content last reviewed · Source: www.cde.ca.gov · Not legal advice.

California is a low-regulation state in FaithSchool’s sourced row. The primary-source citation we surface is the annual Private School Affidavit (Cal. Educ. Code § 33190). Attendance is marked expected; assessment is framed as a portfolio, not an annual state test in our table.

Hours are a 900-hour / 175-day planning benchmark here — California is the featured state whose day benchmark is 175, not 180. Other lawful California paths exist; this page only describes the affidavit-and-records pattern already used on FaithSchool. Not legal advice.

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What this jurisdiction expects

Regulation levelLow
Instructional hours / year900 (benchmark)
Instructional days / year175 (benchmark)
Day-by-day attendanceExpected
AssessmentPortfolio
Notice / registrationAnnual notice
ReportingNone

Documented subjects

  • English
  • Math
  • Science
  • Social Studies
  • Visual & Performing Arts
  • Health
  • Physical Education

Primary source

Cal. Educ. Code § 33190 (Private School Affidavit)

Open the official regulator →

This is general guidance, not legal advice. Verify your jurisdiction's homeschool requirements with the official regulator or HSLDA.

Review date = the last time the California source data on this page was updated in FaithSchool's version-controlled repository. Rules change; confirm current requirements with the official regulator before you rely on them.

California requirements, hours, notice, and records

Notes written for California only, drawn from the sourced rule on this page, not invented hour or statute numbers. Always re-check the official regulator before you file or move.

What the California row on this site covers

  • Sourced regulation level: low — annual notice, not New York’s quarterly reporting.
  • Annual notice: Private School Affidavit is the citation this site uses (Cal. Educ. Code § 33190).
  • Attendance is marked expected on the California row — keep a calendar even if you never mail it.
  • Assessment framing: portfolio, not an annual standardized-test mandate in our table.
  • Subjects commonly documented: English, Math, Science, Social Studies, Visual & Performing Arts, Health, and PE.

Hours and the 175-day California benchmark

  • No mandated hour total on the sourced California row.
  • Planning benchmark: 900 hours / 175 days — the day figure is the California-specific difference versus Florida or Texas.
  • A dated attendance calendar matters more here than in a no-notice state.
  • Compare other states on the hours-by-state page when you need the 175-versus-180 distinction in one place.

Annual affidavit — and what this page does not cover

  • Notice type: annual. Re-file the affidavit path each year if that is the option you use.
  • No separate reporting cadence on the sourced row (unlike New York’s quarterly reports).
  • Keep a dated copy of what you filed.
  • Charter, public independent study, or other lawful options are real — this page does not inventory them and does not invent extra statute numbers.

California records that match the affidavit year

  • Annual affidavit copy, attendance dates, and a subject portfolio.
  • Visual and performing arts, health, and PE appear on the sourced subject list — do not omit them from samples.
  • Hours logs support the attendance calendar when someone asks how the year was spent.
  • Export a date-range pack from FaithSchool when a new school, evaluator, or move out of state asks for proof.

Keep the year in one place

These tools and briefs sit next to the California law page, so your hours, attendance, and evidence pack stay connected.

Other featured states: Florida · Texas · New York · Pennsylvania.

California homeschool FAQ

This is general guidance, not legal advice. Verify your jurisdiction's homeschool requirements with the official regulator or HSLDA.